Paper fastener



May 30, 1939. E. s. ROSCOE ET AL. 2,160,564

- PAPER. FASTENER Original Filed Jan. 22, 1934 2 Sheer.sSheet 1 15,13142 I @F j INVENTOR 8 FRED WACKERMAN Enwnv ,5. Roscaz AT OR Y y 30,1939.E. s. ROSCOE Em. 2,160,564

PAPER FASTENER Original Filed Jan. 22, 1934 2 Sheets-Shet 2 ATTORN 33INVENTOR Patented May 30, 1939 PAPER FASTENER Edwin' -SsRoscoe andFrederick Ackerman, Rochester,v N.- Y., assignors= to'-Yawman & -Erbe IMfg. 00., Rochester, N.

New-York Y., a corporation of The. present invention relates to paperfasteners of the type comprising abackingimember having spaced,projecting fiexibletangs adapted to be inserted through spacedperforations in a file of'papers or.documents, and a keeperfor lockingthe tangs parallel to the surface of the papers after'being thusinserted.

The main feature of the invention resides in a one piece keeper for apaperfastenerwhich" is easily applied to .the' tangs' of the fastenerand whichis securely held thereon'until such times as it is 'desiredto:detach the keeper, when it is easily removed.

Another feature of the invention resides in a keeper which is applied tothe tangs of a paper fastener by a movement solely in the.principalplane of afile of papers on the fastener, said -keeperhaving a portioninterveningbetween the tangs and the'file'of papers held thereby so thatthe tangs are prevented from"mutilating the top sheet of the file.

Still another feature of the "invention" relates to a" fastenerhavingretainingparts'on the ends of its tangsto interengage with co-operatingparts on' a keeper to retain the keeper "on the tangs.

A further feature of the'invention relates toa keeper for a paperfastenensaid .keeper having a portionengaging an edge of the file ofpapers to which thefastener has been applied so that it is retained onthe tangs of the fastener.

An additional feature of the invention resides in the'provision of akeeper for a paper fastener which'requires a minimumamount ofmaterialrin themaking thereof and which is. economicalto manufacture.

These and other features of the invention will appear from the detaileddescription and claims when taken with theidrawings in Whi'ch'Fig. 1 isa perspective view of a, paperfa'stener of "the present inventionapplied toia' file of papers'inclined so'that its main plane is inclinedaway from the line of vision; Fig.2 is'a cross-sectional view takenalong alin'e intersecting either'of the tangs of thefastenerat'eitherend of the keeper of'FigJ 1; Fig. 3- is a plan view ofa portion=of afile of papers withthe tangs of the -fas- .tener'bent'over into theplane of the file of papers .and. illustrating .theifirst step inapplying the keeper to: the tangs; Fig: 4. is :anendviewlofa vmodifiedform of the keeper showing-one-of; the tangs in cross-sectionand Fig. 5is a'longitudinai section of this'keeper taken alongethe line.-5:5.-of-Fig.- 4 indicating the tang; partially inserted into the keeper;Fig.5 illustrates a cross-sectional view ofa keeper showing a modifiedarrangement. for retaining the tangsgwhich section may .be taken at any'point along the keepert preferably near one end. thereof; "Figi'7 is across-sectional view of a. modified form of keeper having thereonatang-retaining means in theform. or a ridge;"l*" ig.8 is across-sectional view of still a different form .of' keeper employing adifierent type of tang-retaining means which is provided on the top.member; Fig.9 illustrates a further modified "form of keeper in whichthe tangretaining' means is aifolded-over portion on the underside of"thetop memaber; 'Figs. '10 and 11 .are cross-sectional views takenthrough a fragment of a'file of papers and through the keeper Showingamddifiedform of means for retaining a keeper Lon the file respectivelyillustrating the keeper during'its'application' to the file and alsowhen it has-been finallyadju'ste'd to its locked position thereon;-:Fig. '12 is a fragmentary top View and" Fig. i 13.. is across-sectional view taken on the line" l3-'l 3 of Fig; 12 showing aportion .ofxa"keeperssimilar' to that shown 'in"Fig.""8, except that thekeeper has. beenchanged slightly to give greater" resilience" to the endportions of its top'member so that the tang-retaining means can bereadily'idisengagedfrom the tang; Fig.'14 isanot-her'modified' formof'keeper in which" the lip on the bottom member thereof is extendedslightly at? each end to' project'beyond the main portions of the'keeperan'd'thereby assist in retaining the tangs 'in' the'keeper 'Fig; 15 isa' top "view .of'a keeper showing asimilar locking arrangementwhi'chdiffers from that shown in Fig. '14"'by"providing cut-outportions orrecesses 'in the-bottom"member so that it-is unnecessary to extendthe'lip portion of the-keeper beyond the keeper ends Figs. '16, Hand 18represent respectively'a top viewyan end View and a side view ofimmodifie'dform-of keeper in which the ends-of the uppermember of thekeeper project down- 'Ward'*below' the plane of the bottommember to'enter the perforations in the upper portion of a file of papers; Fig.19 is a top view of a modified 'form'of fastenerapplied to a file-ofpapers; the

"keeper being'omi-ttedrFig. "-20 is'a cross-sectional 1 ..-.to a;file-.ofjpapers :and specifically indicating nibsion= the endsof-the tangs ofthe fastener;

Fig. 24 is a plan view of a keeper suitable for use with the fastenershown in Fig. 23 provided with openings to receive the nibs on the endsof the fasteners tangs; Fig. 25 is a cross-sectional view taken on thesection line 25-45 of Fig. 24 indicating the manner in which the nibs onthe tangs of the fastener interengage with the slots in the top memberof the keeper; Fig. 26 is a cross-sectional view of a modified form ofkeeper in which the top member instead of being provided with slots isprovided with a struck-up portion to receive the nibs on the tangs; Fig.2'7 illustrates a keeper in which the top member or cover portion is cutaway in the center to assist in inserting and removing the tangstherefrom; Fig. 28 represents a top view of a keeper embodying thedifferent features shown in Figs. 12, l3, 14, 19, 20 and 21, while Fig.29 is a cross-sectional view thereof taken on the line 29-29 of Fig. 28;Fig. 30 is a top view of a keeper combining the various featuresdisclosed in Figs. 7, 8, 10, 11, 16, 17, 18 and 2'7; Fig. 31 is across-sectional view taken on the line 3l-3i of Fig. 30, Fig. 32 is across-section taken on the line 32-32 of Fig. 30 and Fig. 33 is an endview of this keeper.

Referring to the drawings, 5 designates the base of a fastener havingthe tangs 6 and 1 of resilient material which can be bent at rightangles to the base for insertion through perforations such as 8 in afile of papers 9 and which can thereafter be bent parallel to the planeof the topmost sheet of the file where they are held by a detachablekeeper designated in. While the fastener is herein shown as having itstangs and base member made of a single piece, it will be understood thatthe spaced tangs may be made of separate pieces separately fastened to abacking piece such as a binder or folder. The keeper is commonly made ofone piece of sheet metal or like material and comprises a base member IIwith a projecting lip I2 adapted to lie on the topmost sheet of thefile. This base member is folded at one edge I3 to provide a top memberl4 extending in a plane parallel to the principal plane of the member,but spaced therefrom. The free edge 15 of this top member is flaredoutwardly away from the base member to facilitate the insertion of thetangs 6 and 1 in the keeper. In the preferred form of the invention, thespacing of the top member I4 and base member I l is such as to retaintanks 6 and 1 frictionally in superimposed relation in the keeper, whenthe thickness of the file papers 9 is small or to retain these tangs inalinement as shown in Fig. 1 when the thickness of the file is greater.The width of the bottom member H and its lip 12 with respect to the topmember is such that the tangs 6 and 'I can be folded onto the lip or thelip can be inserted under these tangs after they have been folded intothe plane of the paper as shown in Fig. 3, at any rate the tangs 6 and lare separated from the top sheet of the file by the bottom member whenthe keeper is completely applied to the fastener as illustrated in Fig.1.

In the form of the invention shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the frictionalengagement of the tangs 6 and I with the bottom member II and the topmember I4 is relied upon to hold the keeper on the tangs. Thisarrangement is usually adequate for this purpose, since the bent tangscan rarely lie freely in the exact center of the space between I I andI4 but will frictionally engage one or both retaining surfaces. Also thetangs during use become bent or corrugated crosswise due to the repeatedfolding arising from the repeated removal and application of the keeperto the tangs on the addition of any sheets to the file. However,additional retaining means may be provided for holding the keeper on thetangs as shown in Figs. 4 and 5 wherein a portion 16 of the bottommember at each end of the keeper is depressed away from the top memberas shown in Fig. 4. However, the

, lip portion l2 remains in the position shown in Fig.

2 so that during the application of the keeper 'to the tangs, the tangsengage the end portions of the lip. Each tang in passing under the topmember I engages the rounded corner I! between the lip and the bottomportion and thereafter drops into the depressed portion "5 of the bottommember. When it is desired to remove the keeper from the tangs, theywill first engage the corner I! which will offer considerable resistanceto the passage of the tangs from their position under the top member.

In the modified form of the invention shown in Fig. 6, instead of havingonly the end portions of the bottom member depressed as shown in Figs. 4and 5, the lip member I2 is raised above the plane of the bottom memberI6 either near each end or throughout the length of the keeper, so thata rounded corner l9 at the entrance to the space under the top memberI4, tends to resist the removal of the tangs from their position underthis member.

This same result may be also achieved in the arrangement shown in Fig. 7wherein a raised embossing or ridge 20 which may extend throughout thelength of the bottom member or which may be of short length at each endof the bottom member, restricts the entrance to the space under the topmember 14 and thereby restrains the removal of the keeper from thetangs. Still another arrangement for accomplishing this same result isshown in Fig. 8 wherein the top member l4 adjacent its free edge isprovided with a depressed rib 2| which is either coextensive with thelength of the top member or may extend for a short length at each end ofthe top member for the purpose of restricting the entrance to the spacebetween the base and the top member of the keeper. This embodiment alsoillustrates the use of a raised portion lZa at the free edge of lip I2,the purpose of which is to prevent cutting of the top sheet of the fileas the keeper is being moved into position along the surface of thissheet.

A further arrangement for retaining the tangs in the keeper is disclosedin Fig. 9 wherein the free margin of the top member 14 is folded onitself at its underside adjacent the bottom member II. The free edge 22of this folded portion is rather abrupt so that it will engage an edgeof each of the tangs, so that it may be necessary to spring the edge ofthe top member away from the bottom member by inserting a knife or otherimplement therebetween when it is desired to remove the keeper from thetangs.

The keeper may also be held on the tangs by the arrangement shown inFigs. 10 and 11 wherein the lip 12 is provided with a downturned flange23. The length of this lip should be such that when the tangs 6 and 1are in their fastening position under the top member M, the flange 23will engage the top edge of the file as shown in Fig. 11. To apply thiskeeper to the fastener, the tangs are folded down on the lip I2 in themanner previously indicated. Thereafter, the keeper is forced to theright as shown in Fig. 10 until the flange 23 engages the edge of thefile of papers as shown in Fig. 11. In the removal of this type ofkeeper from the files, the flange 23 is raised calculations show thatthese grooves should 'I be upward by inserting a thin blade thereunderuntil it will ride on the surface of the uppermost paper in the file asshown in Fig. 10.

In order to facilitate the insertion of the tangs in thekeeper, the endportions I411 of the top member I l, may be made more resilient bycutting away portions of the fold [3 between the top and base'members asindicated at (Figs. 12 and 13). Although this arrangement has beenparticularly applied to the arrangement shown in Fig. 8, it isalsoapplicable to any of the modifications shown in Figsp6, 7, and'9.

A further arrangement for resisting the withdrawal of the tangs from'the keeper is shown in Fig. 14 wherein the lip I2 is provided withextensions I2b projecting beyond the ends of the remainder of the keeperso that in applying the keeper to the fastener, the tangs will first befolded ton to the lip l2 and as the keeper is moved parallel to theplane of the papers, the tangs will first engage the ends of theextension lZb. Then as they pass under the top member M, the springinessof the paper compressed under the keeper will cause the forward lateraledges of the tangs to engage the rounded corners E20 of the extensions,thereby tending to retain the tangs in the keeper.

Instead of providing the projections l2b on the lip 12 as in thelast-described arrangement, a recess I la may be cut into the bottommember H at each end thereof (Fig. 15). This arrangement functions inlike manner to retain the keeper since the tangs on being inserted underthe top member 3' will rest in the recesses Ha with their forward edgesengaging the rounded corners of the adjacent lip 12.

A further arrangement for retaining the keeper on the tangs of thefastener, is shown in Figs. 16, 1'7 and 18 wherein the top member i4 isprovided at its ends with lugs 25 which are extended outwardly anddownwardly to a position below the plane of the bottom member II asshown in Figs. 17 and 18. This arrangement permits the tangs to beinserted readily under the top member M and yet allows the lugs at eachend of the file to drop down into the perforations 8 in the file ofpapers. It will be understood that in applying this keeper to thefastener the tangs are folded down on the top surface of the lip l2, andthereafter, the keeper is moved along the surface of the top sheet ofthe file with the lugs 25 engaging this surface. The tangs will enterthe space between the top member Hi, the lugs 25 and the ends of thebase member until the tangs are under the top member. At this time theselugs will spring into their normal position so that they will engage theperforations 8, and by engaging the edges of the papers at theseperforations, will resist the displacement of the keeper from thisfastener. In order to increase the resilience of the top member adjacentthese lugs, the fold 13 between this member and the base member may becut away at each end as indicated at 26.

In the foregoing arrangements, the fastener including its tangs has beenshown as following the usual construction, but in Figs. 19 to 22inclusive, a modified fastener and its coopcrating keeper have beendisclosed. The end portions Ed and Ya of the tangs 6 and 1 are hereinprovided with lengthwise grooves which are arranged to interengage ornest, as best shown in Fig. 20, when the tangs are bent parallel to themain plane of the file of papers after being inserted through theperforations 8 in the file. Since the tangs cannot be bent at thegrooves,

no longer than the shortest practicable bend" at the free ends of thetangs in thea-bsence of :such 1 grooves. Then .the maximum amount ofoverlap of the ends of the tangs should equal the 'length 'ofthe groovedportion. This'construction nafiords i the maximum capacity for: paperson the fastener. By way of example, themaximum length of eachgroove canbe about A inch, the maximum length of each tang less than 1 andr%-inches and the capacity of the fastener for papers lessthan 1 and A;inches. The keeper for use 'with'this'fastener may be similar to thatshown in Figs; 1, 2 and 3, but differs therefrom in that the top member-I4 is provided with J a-groove- 21 into which the nesting groovedportionsfia and 'ia of the tangs enter to retain these tangs in thekeeper.

As an alternative construction of thefastener and keeper illustrated inFigs. 23, 24 and 25, the

tangs B and? may be provided near their ends with raised nibs fib and lbwhich respectively enter slots 28 'and 2H' -in the'top member i l-of thekeeper. In this construction, the operator's fingers or some hard objectis used to press the 5 nibs out of the mentioned slots so that the tangscan be disengaged from the keeper. Instead of providing the slots 28 and29, two correspondingly arranged: grooves or a single continuous groove#32 may be formed in the top member a M of the keeper. It should-benoted that in these modified tang constructions, the tangs cannotoverlap.

If desired the top member l4 may be cut away as indicated at-3lin Fig.27 to facilitatethe posir tioni-ng of the tangs 6 and! in superimposedre- 'lation under this member. As herein shown the embossed nibs 32inthe bottom member-near each end thereof help to retain the tangs inthe keeper. This arrangement of the nibs is similar to that indicated incross-section in Fig. 7.

While the several arrangements previously described may be used invarious combinations, one possible combination is shown in Figs. 28 and29 wherein the tang construction of Fig. 19 is used with a keeper havingthe tang-retaining elements of Figs. 12, 14 and 21. In Fig. 29 thegrooves in the tangs and the keeper are inverted as compared with theirconstruction in Figs. 20, 21 and 22 but it will be understood that thisarrangement is optional.

Another possible combination of the numerous constructions is shown inFigs. 30, 31, 32 and 33 wherein the features of Figs. 6, 7, 8, 10, 16and 27 are combined in one keeper. this modification, that the rib 2| inthe margin of the top member I4 extends into the end portions or lugs 25of this member. This rib in addition to strengthening the lugs 25 andthe margin of the top member l4 restricts the entrance to thetang-receiving space, the free edge of the top member flaring upwardlyfrom. this rib to guide the tangs to said entrance.

What we claim is:

1. A keeper for use with the base and end tangs l It will be noted in'2. In combination with a file of papers having spaced perforationsadjacent one edge thereof, a keeper for use with a paper fastenercomprising a base having spaced flexible tangs insertible through saidperforations with the free ends of the tangs folded against the topsurface of the file, said keeper being provided with a top member and abase member in spaced relation thereto to define a space for receivingthe tangs laterally, said base member having a lip projecting laterallytherefrom, said lip having a flange adapted to engage the adjacent edgeof said file when said tangs are inserted under said top member.

3. In combination with a file of papers having spaced perforationstherein, a keeper for use with a paper fastener comprising a base havingspaced flexible tangs insertable through said perforations, said keeperbeing formed of a single piece of sheet material folded lengthwise toprovide a base member and a top member in spaced relation whereby alateral opening is provided in the keeper for laterally receiving saidtangs, said top member at each end thereof being provided with anoutwardly and downwardly extending lip adjacent the end of the basemember projecting across the plane of said base member to enterperforations in said file and thereby retain said keeper on the tangs.

4. A keeper for use with the base and end tangs of a paper fastener,said keeper being made of a single piece of sheet material formed toprovide a base member and a top member in superimposed spaced relationthereby defining a recess with a lateral opening for laterally receivingsaid tangs and for retaining the same, said base member at each endthereof having portions depressed away from said top member, asubstantial portion of the longitudinal free margin of said top memberbeing provided with a depressed rib extending parallel to the free edgeof said margin and projecting toward said bottom member to restrict saidlateral opening and to reinforce said margin, the portion of said marginbetween the rib and the longitudinal free edge of said margin flaringaway from said bottom member to facilitate the guiding of the tangstoward said lateral opening on application of the keeper to said tangs,the end portions of said top member being extended longitudinally beyondsaid bottom member and being turned downward toward said bottom memberto cover the respective bends in said tangs.

5. A keeper for use with the base and end tangs of a paper fastener,said keeper being made of a single piece of sheet material formed toprovide a base member and a top member in superimposed spaced relationthereby defining a recess with a lateral opening for laterally receivingsaid tangs and for retaining the same, the end portions of said topmember being extended longitudinally beyond said bottom member to formlugs turned downward toward said bottom member to cover the respectivebends in said tangs, a substantial portion of the longitudinal freemargin of said top member being provided with a depressed rib extendingparallel to the free edge of said margin and projecting toward saidbottom member to restrict said lateral opening and to reinforce saidmargin, the portion of said margin between the rib and the longitudinalfree edge of said margin flaring away from said bottom member tofacilitate the guiding of the tangs toward said lateral opening onapplication of the keeper to said tangs, said rib extending into saidlugs.

EDWIN S. ROSCOE. FREDERICK W. ACKERMAN.

